Norinco 1911 .45 accuracy??

[capp325]

fwiw, many of the best gunsmiths recommend the Norincrap frame, barrel and slide over Para, colt, and springfield.

a $300 base gun is a great price to start a custom project.

Of course they do. They can probably charge their clients an insane amount of money to bring a roughly-made Norinco into decent shape whereby a Colt or a Springfield would work perfectly fine right out of the box.

By the way, if you don't mind me asking, who are those best gunsmiths that think so highly of Norinco? Any specific names?

 

[Canuck44]

Frag

Get serious. I have three Norincos now. Two have been fully customized for total all in costs under a grand. My A1 is about as accurate and reliable as any 1911 is going to be. I left one stock and have yet to have a problem with feeding a variety of bullets through the gun and it is accurate as well. Much better buy than any Colt, springfield GI basic model and better steel in frame and slide as well. Could mention the fact there is no MIM or plastic in the guns either.

FYI Norinco now has several upgraded 1911's in .45acp, one the NP 44 apperas to be an upgraded pistol from their basic GI model. Wish Marstar would import them as they are now available in the Philipines.

For a base gun to cusomize or just a basic plinker they are excellent buys and enjoy almost a cult following in the US where they now can't be imported. All the guns really need is a trigger job and new sights. Add $200 to the cost of the base gun and you will have a gun that will outshoot your basic Colt/Springfield for about $200 less.

Cap325 - Bill Wilson still lists the Norinco as a platform his shop will do custom work on, Gunnar in Pr. George speaks highly of them. Dlask did my A1 for me and certainly didn't slam them. Need more? Incidently all three of my Norincos worked perfectly out of the box. All were accurate from the get go. Sounds to me you hae never had much experience with the guns from your comments.

Take Care

 

[Musky Hunter]

Norincrap parts are all forged...not cast or injected like other 1911s! This is a good starting point for 1911s.

A good thing abt. 1911s are that you can customize it too fit your hands. For me i must change to a super short trigger, upswept beavertail, checker FS, and accurize the pistol (fitted slide and bushing)..

A Norinco is just a cheap starting block....

Gunner and RK both recommend the Norincrap 1911s. It is hard to argue against them!

Of course they do. They can probably charge their clients an insane amount of money to bring a roughly-made Norinco into decent shape whereby a Colt or a Springfield would work perfectly fine right out of the box.

By the way, if you don't mind me asking, who are those best gunsmiths that think so highly of Norinco? Any specific names?

 

[bear.23]

Of course they do. They can probably charge their clients an insane amount of money to bring a roughly-made Norinco into decent shape whereby a Colt or a Springfield would work perfectly fine right out of the box.

By the way, if you don't mind me asking, who are those best gunsmiths that think so highly of Norinco? Any specific names?

Actually Rogder Kotanko of Dark International.. He's built some pretty impressive peices based on Norinco 1911's

There is nothing wrong with the Norinco hard parts. I don't know where you've bought Springfields and Colts but they are not custom guns out of the factory...

I was at my smith a while back and there had brand new a colt 1991 that a customer had brought in... The slide was so sloppy that that the disconnector wouldn't always engage..I've bought 2 springfields that threw front sights within the first 100 rounds and one that needed to have the springs (main and trigger) changed to work consistently...

 

[Mr AR15]

Can you advise what was done at Armco to tighten up the groups?

Thanks to all who have replied.

Outdoors

Gunnar replaced the link and there was a problem with the breach face of the barrel and how it locked up which he fixed. I'm not sure if he replaced the bushing but the whole works came to $100. He put it in a Ransom rest to check his work and got 2" at 35yds. That was fine with me.

The gun has been 100% reliable. Never had a failure to feed, fire or eject in the three years and 5000 rounds I put throuh her.

For $300 plus $100 for trigger job = $400, no strike that its now $500 with the work Gunnar did, I can't say I'm disappointed with this pistol. It may not be as pretty as a Colt or a Springfield but I'm not lookin for beauty when I'm shooting it. Its also built like a brick s**thouse. Chinese make really hard steel.

 

[outdoors]

Norinco 1911

Thanks to all who have replied both positive and negative.

I'm sure that an "Armco prepped" Norinco for $449.00 would function fine and be reliable for many rounds but the sights would have to be changed right away. Then I think that maybe I should fit a beavertail safety as the standard hammer has always bitten me and while I'm at the frame I might as well have some metal removed under the trigger guard. Front strap checkering is also nice and the mag well should be bevelled. I also like an ambi safety as I like to shoot left handed sometimes. It starts to make the price of a STI sound resonable!

My Norinco M14 has been such a solid performer that it has me wondering about their 1911. If I could get 2" groups with a 230 grain cast FP @850 fps with reliability for a modest price I think it would be the perfect .45 and that is more accuracy than I can hold under field conditions.

Regards,

Outdoors

 

[Frag]

I think the lesson would be :

If you are ready to add money for modifications in it, go for it. We just have to remember that there is nothing free. A 449$ 1911 will not do the job of a 1200$ one. If you put money in it, it will surely get close, but if you don't ... don't expect the accuracy of a major brand one.

But keep us informed on your purchase. We would like to know how this story end

 

[Mystic Precision]

I think if you compare a true orig spec USGI Colt 1911 (the ones that rattle when shaken) and the Norc, they would shoot equally bad/good depending on how you look at it. The Norc is built to the same generous dimensions.

Now the same work that transforms a rattly old war horse, can be done to the Norc with equally good results.

Since the enormous interest in the 1911 as a comp HG, most modern big name brands start with frames/slides made to tighter tolerances. Throw in some fitting and you have a great shooter. The Norc does the same thing for about 1/3 the price but need way more TLC.

If not happy with the way the factory Norc shoots, swap in a tighter bushing (fitted is best), a longer link (or just swap in a barrel with oversized hood - fitting usually required) and I bet the groups shrink in 1/2.

From there, you can gut all the other parts to improve trigger and feel/looks. A bit more polishing and honing and it runs like a charm. Get really ambitious and peen rails and fit and voila, a match quality 1911 done the old school way.

Wilson developed an entire line of custom pistols based on the Norc when they could get them. All printed articles I read were extremely positive about the quality and strength of the metal used in the frames. Why would they bother trying to build $2500US pistols on a piece of crap?

My personal Norc has a full sized frame with an aftermarket commander slide/top end. Not much of the orig parts remain. Still, with a ton of aftermarket parts, still about 1/2 the cost of a big name pistol. I did all the fitting so saved on the labour.

Shoots my handloads in the 2 to 3" range at 35yds so not bad at all. Now mounted to a MechTech carbine and having a hoot with that.

Jerry